Customer Complaining About T-Shirts Falling Apart - Never Seen Damage Like This!

[mzarzyczny]

Hello there! New member reaching out for help!

Over the last few months, the company that I work for has printed t-shirts, longsleeve shirts and hoodies for a local restaurant. Today, the restaurant called in to complain about the shirts falling apart. I had them take some pictures to see if there was some kind of obvious manufacturing issue. However, after getting the pictures back, I can comfortably say that I've never seen damage like this before. The bottom of the one shirt looks like it was chewed up!!

Have any of you seen damage like this? If so, any ideas as to the cause? Is there a chance that this is a manufacturing issue, or is it almost 100% user error?

Thanks for any help you can provide!!

[GraphicDisorder]

Looks like burns from welding or grinding metal with that shirt on it. Unless you have a bunch like that I would suggest user issue.

[Frog]

The damage shown in the bottom pic, the many smaller holes towards the bottom of the shirt, I have seen caused by belt buckles. Buckles sometimes have a sharp edge that goes unnoticed.
In fact, it has happened to me, but having all the shirts I need as replacements, they don't usually go this far!

[TH Apparel]

Maybe someone getting back splash from the fryer and it's burning spots on the shirt?  Perhaps suggest printing some heavy duty aprons on the next order.

how many do they have like this?

[blue moon]

all in front of the shirt, that's most likely user error (as suggested, a belt buckle or something similar).

pierre

[mzarzyczny]

So we were thinking maybe something in a washing machine, like a sharp edge somewhere. I guess that would correlate with what you all are saying. That it's something that the user is doing to the shirts (inadvertently or not) that is causing the issues.

[blue moon]

So we were thinking maybe something in a washing machine, like a sharp edge somewhere. I guess that would correlate with what you all are saying. That it's something that the user is doing to the shirts (inadvertently or not) that is causing the issues.

open zippers will put holes in the shirts during washing. The problem is, all the holes seem to be on the front of the shirt, anything washing related would be everywhere.
Is this one user only or all of the staff?

pierre

[mzarzyczny]

So we were thinking maybe something in a washing machine, like a sharp edge somewhere. I guess that would correlate with what you all are saying. That it's something that the user is doing to the shirts (inadvertently or not) that is causing the issues.

open zippers will put holes in the shirts during washing. The problem is, all the holes seem to be on the front of the shirt, anything washing related would be everywhere.
Is this one user only or all of the staff?

pierre

It's more than just the one user, but our contact is being horribly vague as to the actual numbers.

[GoWestRob]

We've heard about it happening to some of our clients, maybe from when bartenders lean close against the bar to take an order. Someone suggested it could be from the surface cleaner they use to clean the bar, but either way, the holes didn't come from you.

[Dottonedan]

I happen to have some experience at my take on it.  I've sprayed with a bleach bottle cleaner product that had a lot of bleach content.

In a restaurant, I imagine a lot of that stuff needs to get wiped down with bleach/anti bacterial cleanser and probably in a spray bottle. These spray bottles don't always spray out in a fine mist. Sometimes or, (a lot of times) more heavy spots. If someone were to lean across the table while wiping the table, they would get a build up/heavy concentration on their shirt.
That's what this looks like to me. The user (in picture) is probably a person that does a lot of cleaning.

I've done this and have the holes just like in this picture in the same areas, but I toss them. You can also get spots like this on your pants but the pants are usually thicker and doesn't wear out as fast. May see bleach stains though.

On tees, the bleach and chemicals to clean can eat a hole rather than stain.


On another note,  I happen to be prone to getting holes in my new and older tee shirts. Don't know why, but I get many tees that might be brand new....and after one-two washes, I find a few large pin holes in the shoulder or lower back or just anywhere random.  A lot of people don't complain about this (and I'm around a lot of printers) so I'd of imagined I would have heard about this more frequently if it were the manufacturer. So I assume it's something I'm doing in my wash or my household.

When you tell them you think it's user error, they will more than likely say, (Well, it's never happened before).  Sometimes ya can't explain it.

[3Deep]

We had the same problem once, but they never brought in a shirt for us to see, the next order we change brands same thing they said after a few months, never saw a shirt.  I'm thinking it was something going on with the employee's and cooks, I can see seams coming loose from hanging threads but holes and that first pic of yours looks like a burn hole.

[XG Print]

I have seen an hole from time to time but the bottom picture is user error for sure.  I would lean towards the fryer or cleaning chemicals splashing on to the shirt.  Definitely not your fault.  If it is a good customer and only a few shirts we may replace them but ONLY if it was a really good customer and an easy print.  This just isn't your fault and no matter what brand you use I am willing to bet the same will happen again.

[Sbrem]

I'm going for user error, cleaning solution most likely. Our screen guy's t's end up looking like that, none of the printers though...

Steve

[inkman996]

Look at the top pic, their is something that stained the shirt bridging that hole. It looks like something hardened and maybe cracked.

[Frog]

I'm going for user error, cleaning solution most likely. Our screen guy's t's end up looking like that, none of the printers though...

Steve

That's the reclaim liquid probably, but doesn't that bleach as well?